The Higher Administrative Court of Berlin-Brandenburg on Thursday ruled in favor of environmentalists fighting police over the , near the German capital Berlin.
The court found that local police had not sufficiently proven that the camp posed a safety threat, ruling that treehouses were a legitimate form of protest and could not be ordered removed.
Environmental protesters erected the camp in late February to fight the planned expansion of ‘s Grünheide gigafactory, which would require the clearcutting of a large swath of forest.
Court victory means police, Tesla may not remove camp or ban protesters
The camp, which activists argue is the equivalent of a protest protected under right to assembly laws — which require no extra permission from police to take place, but can be rejected in certain situations — was originally registered from February 29 to March 15, then extended until May 20. The area of the protest was also set to expand by about one hectare (2.47 acres) and the number of treehouses in it increase from 15, to 20.
Police had attempted to block the move in March but a Lower Administrative Court in Potsdam ruled against them. Police then appealed the decision before the Higher Administrative Court, where they again lost.
This means neither police nor Tesla can dismantle the camp, nor can they prohibit protesters from entering the site.
There is no further legal recourse for police after the Thursday Higher Administrative Court’s decision.
The decision, said the court, solely addressed the legality of the camp and not whether protesters’ right to assembly may continue past May 20.
A speaker for the protest group “Tesla stoppen” (Stop Tesla) said the group had already filed an extension request.
Tesla gigafactory expansion rejected by locals, but will council approve anyhow?
Protesters called the court’s verdict a “major victory,” whereas police reacted with reserve, saying they would study the decision to analyze where exactly they had made mistakes in presenting their case.
Protesters say police have sought to limit their right to assembly while attempting to criminalize legitimate protest.
The Grünheide facility, the only European production and shipping site for the US electric vehicle manufacturer, has been the focus of heated protest over both the deforestation required to expand it, as well as the massive amounts of public water the company requires in the production of its vehicle batteries.
Grünheide is nestled between two lakes and next to a large forest, east of Berlin and not far from the Polish border.
, with at times heavy clashes between protesters and police, especially when the former , which had also been the target of an in early March.
When the most recent wave of protests ended on Sunday, organizers from three environmental groups promised to attend a local council meeting scheduled for Thursday, May 16, in which council members will vote on whether a downsized version of the expansion will be allowed to proceed.
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Asked on Sunday about , organizers said, “We’ll be back!”
js/msh (AFP, dpa)
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